This invention relates to systems and methods for producing self-healing tires and to tire cleaners suited for use therewith.
Tire cleaners are used in the production of self-healing tires to remove mold release compounds and contaminants from the interior surfaces of the tire in preparation for application of an air barrier coating or sealant. Early tire cleaners of this type included a movable brush which was insertable manually within the tire casing as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 1,863,764. A more recent tire cleaner of this type is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,849,819. The apparatus disclosed in these patents, however, are uneconomical from the standpoints of labor costs and product quality because the brush cleaning operation is controlled manually. The apparatus disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,825,965, while offering certain automated features, affords unsatisfactory tire cleaning in many practical cases because the brush is moved with respect to the tire and is pressed against the interior tire surface using a complicated linkage which often yields insufficient brush contact or scrubbing pressure. Furthermore, the brush itself often offers less than satisfactory mechanical abrasion of the interior tire surface because it is merely rolled thereacross. Another problem with the device disclosed in the latter patent arises when it is desired to clean a transversely flattened tire in which the tire beads are at close clearance. In this instance, it is difficult to obtain a proper air seal with respect to the rotatable rims for inflating the tire.